SWISS global transport and logistics company Kuehne+Nagel has shown growth in all its business units during the third quarter of 2021, in some cases significantly.
At CHF (Swiss Franc) 21.8 billion, the group’s net turnover in the first nine months of 2021 was almost 50% higher than in the same period last year and EBIT more than doubled to over CHF 1.8 billion.
Dr Detlef Trefzger, CEO of Kuehne + Nagel International AG, said, “In the current situation with supply chains that are difficult to plan, our Kuehne+Nagel experts are working tirelessly to implement the best possible logistics solutions for our customers.
“We are on track and were again able to achieve an excellent business result in the third quarter. In the coming months, we do not expect any significant change in the constrained market situation.”
In the third quarter of 2021, the challenging market environment for sea logistics, with congested ports and supply chains out of sync, required a particularly high level of support and resultant lower logistics productivity, the company said.
The business unit continued to focus on the transport of goods with complex requirements.
At 3.4 million TEU, container volumes in the first nine months of 2021 were slightly above the prior-year period. The unit’s net turnover was CHF 9.1 billion and EBIT reached CHF 991 million. The conversion rate was at 52.5%.
With strong volume growth, air logistics once again posted market share gains in the third quarter of 2021. Globally limited cargo capacities required tailor-made customer solutions. Services for pharma and essential goods as well as e-commerce continued to be in high demand.
Air freight volumes in the first nine months of 2021 were around 50% higher than in the same period of the previous year at 1.6 million tonnes, of which around 20% is attributable to the acquisition of the Chinese air freight forwarder Apex.
Net turnover in air logistics was CHF 6.6 billion and EBIT CHF 645 million. The conversion rate was at 41.2%.
Kuehne+Nagel road logistics unit was again able to significantly increase shipment volume in the third quarter of 2021. Network capacity utilisation was high in Europe in particular; demand also remained strong in North America. As a special service offering, demand was particularly strong for the digital solution for global customs clearance.
The unit’s net turnover for the first nine months of 2021 was CHF 2.7 billion and EBIT almost doubled to CHF 75 million compared to the same period last year.
Due to the divestment of UK activities at the beginning of the year, net turnover of the contract logistics unit was CHF 3.4 billion in the first nine months of 2021. This was below the prior-year period although EBIT improved to CHF 114 million.
